Miscellaneous Monday—Number Forty-one

A Day Late and a Dollar Short Edition

"Time Travelling with Jack the Ripper on Page and Screen."

By Lucyna Krawczyk-Żywko, University of Warsaw.

First appearance: Anglica, An International Journal of English Studies, 2017.

Essay (15 pages).

Online at Academia.edu (HERE).

   "Jack the Ripper endures attempts at overwriting and remains a legendary killer . . ."

THERE have been many serial killers who've left their bloody stains on the fabric of history but none of them have achieved the enduring notoriety of Jack the Ripper. That popularity could be explained by the fact that the Ripper case has never been officially solved, and it seems to be a universal human trait that where there's a mystery there will always be interest. Given today's literary culture, it's no real surprise that Jolly Jack would reemerge from time to time not just in crime and horror fiction but also in fantasy and science fiction . . .

Note: Be aware that today's article contains SPOILERS throughout. You have been warned.

Typo: "to infinitely wonder through time".

Abstract:

  The article discusses time-travelling Jack the Ripper narratives, the majority being short stories and episodes of TV series. Despite their different temporal foci – late-Victorian past, present, distant future – the texts revolve around four ways of depicting the mysterious murderer: as a timeless force, a killer who uses time travel to escape, a killer whose deeds are to be prevented, and, last but not least, a tool in the hands of future generations. They also indicate that creators and consumers of popular culture are not interested in discovering the Ripper’s identity as much as want to follow him through centuries.

Excerpt:

  Out of the time travelling trend of Ripperana, present in genres as varied as adventure, crime, comedy, drama, fantasy, horror, mystery, thriller, romance, and science fiction, emerge a few dominant ways of depicting Jack the Ripper: 1) a timeless force, with no beginning and usually no end, existing alongside humanity; 2) a fleeing killer, who manages to escape his Victorian pursuers into the future; 3) a killer to be beaten, with time travel used as the means of preventing him from committing the murders; and 4) a useful tool in the hands of future generations. What is interesting in these works is that not only hardly ever is he caught and punished for his deeds, but also that his gory legacy seems to be protected and preserved. Their creators and, by extension, the audiences are not really interested in catching the Ripper, but in chasing him.

Referenced works in the article (all having SPOILERS in the links):

1. A Timeless Force

- "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper" (HERE).

- Thriller episode "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper" (HERE).

- Kolchak: The Night Stalker episode “The Ripper” (HERE).

- Star Trek episode "Wolf in the Fold" (HERE).

- Outer Limits episode "Ripper" (HERE).

- The Sixth Sense episode “With Affection, Jack the Ripper” (HERE).

2. A Fleeing Killer

- Fantasy Island episode “With Affection, Jack the Ripper/Gigolo” (HERE).

- Time After Time (HERE).

- Jaclyn the Ripper (HERE).

3. A Killer to Be Beaten

- The Map of Time (HERE).

- Timecop episode "A Rip in Time" (HERE).

- Doctor Who comic "Ripper's Curse" (HERE).

4. A Useful Tool

- Babylon 5 episode "Comes the Inquisitor" (HERE).

- "A Toy for Juliette" (HERE).

- “The Prowler in the City at the Edge of the World” (HERE).

5. The Chase Through Time.

Resources:

- Wikipedia has informational articles about Jack the Ripper, one of which is (HERE).

- Our latest encounter with Jolly Jack was Punch's contemporary jab at what they regarded as the authorities' mishandling of the Whitechapel murders (HERE).

- Today's author hasn't overlooked "Wolf in the Fold," Robert Bloch's science fictional updating for the Star Trek TV series (HERE).

The bottom line:

Unless otherwise noted, all bibliographical data are derived from The FictionMags Index created by William G. Contento & edited by Phil Stephensen-Payne.

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